LEADING Malaysian conglomerate Sunway Bhd has acquired a parcel of freehold land measuring 1.83ha in Jalan Belfield, Kuala Lumpur for RM165mil.
The proposed development of the land will comprise mainly serviced apartments with some lifestyle retail units.
The mixed development will have an estimated gross development value (GDV) of RM1.1bil, comprising RM1.05bil worth of serviced apartments and RM50mil of retail units.
The development is over a five-year development period and is estimated to be launched by the second half of 2018.
The new land bank, to be purchased through a combination of bank borrowings and internally generated funds, will be acquired from LGT Sdn Bhd, Tan Sri Lim Kok Thay, Puan Sri Lim (Nee Lee) Kim Hua, Yarraville Sdn Bhd, Dandenong Sdn Bhd and Ripponlea Sdn Bhd.
The land is strategically located in Kuala Lumpur city centre, and within 3km from prominent landmarks including the Bukit Bintang shopping belt, the KL Sentral transport hub and Perdana Botanical Gardens.
Future residents of the development will be able to enjoy the locale’s green surroundings, with spectacular views of the Royal Museum (old Istana Negara) at one end and the upcoming tallest building in Kuala Lumpur, Warisan Merdeka, on the other.
The Maharajalela monorail station is also located within 500m from the land, providing easy access for residents to the Bukit Bintang shopping belt and to the KL Sentral transport hub which has connections to intercity trains, Airport Express and other LRT lines.
The land also has easy access to and from Federal Highway, and the north- and south-bound PLUS Expressway via Jalan Syed Putra, Jalan Damansara and Jalan Istana.
The acquisition is expected to provide further earnings visibility for the conglomerate.
Sunway Bhd’s land bank now stands at 1337.4ha with a total GDV of RM51.6bil.
Besides its sizeable land bank for development, Sunway also owns and manages more than 2.7 million sq m of commercial properties.
The acquisition follows Sunway Bhd’s acquisition earlier this year of a 3.42ha prime land along Jalan Peel which will be developed as Sunway Velocity Two, a strategic extension to the conglomerate’s highly successful 9.3ha Sunway Velocity which is next to the Cochrane Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) station as well as the Maluri MRT and LRT interchange.
Sunway Velocity has clinched over RM1bil in property sales since its launch in 2008, and together with the fully occupied Sunway Velocity Shopping Mall, Sunway Velocity Hotel (opening Q3 2017) and Sunway Velocity Medical Center (opening Q4 2018), all of which continues to be owned and managed by Sunway, this transit-oriented development will have a total gross development value of RM5bil.
Last month, Sunway Bhd moved its listing from the Properties counter to the Trading/ Services counter on the Main Board of Bursa Malaysia securities.
The reclassification reflects Sunway Bhd’s strength as a conglomerate with diverse yet complementary businesses that are mostly in leadership positions in their respective sectors.
For details of Sunway Bhd’s property division, log on to www.sunwayproperty.com.my
